Save the Date
by storyweaver24
Summary: Jily. In which Lily and James embark on a road trip and learn more about each other.


**A/N: written for Jily Week 2! Betas are Dee and Renata- thank you! Renata also suggested the name. :) Characters belong to JKR. **

* * *

_So now I think that I could_  
_Love you back_  
_And I hope it's not too late cause you're so attractive_

_Be in my eyes_  
_Be in my heart_  
_Be in my eyes, ay yai yai_  
_Be in my heart_

_- Flowers in Your Hair (The Lumineers)_

* * *

'What in Merlin's name are we doing?'

'We are driving, James,' Lily said with a huff. James eyed the car suspiciously.

'I am not going in _that._ We can Floo.'

'We can also drive,' she repeated. 'And besides, Surrey's only six hours away.'

His mouth fell open. 'Six _hours? _Evans, we could get there in _minutes_ if we just took the Floo Network. I know a man in that department; he could easily set up your sister's house temporarily—'

'No.'

'Evans—'

'No! If I use magic my sister will actually hate me. I can't have her hate me more, not right now. She's already kicked me out of her bridal party, James, I can't have her kick me out of the wedding too—'

'Breathe, Lily,' he ordered, putting his hands on her shoulders. She did as he ordered and drew in a long breath. 'Your sister isn't going to kick you out, I promise. We'll drive.'

'Thank you,' she sighed.

'Can I drive?'

'Not on your life. I actually have my licence.'

'I can put a _Confundus_ Charm on anyone who stops us. They'll think I have my licence.'

'No, James. You don't know how to drive.'

'Fine,' he pouted, 'you can drive. I get to navigate.'

Lily rolled her eyes. 'That's a good idea. Can you read a Muggle map?'

'No. But it'll be an adventure!' He tightened his grip and she realized his hands were still on her shoulders. Clearing her throat and blushing slightly, she stepped back. His hands dropped to his sides and he kept grinning at her like nothing had happened.

Nothing _had_ happened. What was she thinking?'

'Get in the car, then.' She ducked into the driver's seat and handed him the folded-up map. 'We're here, we want to get there, find the fastest route.'

'Yes ma'am,' he saluted and poured over the paper. 'Turn left.'

'I know how to get out of Perth, James.'

'Right.'

'Turn right? You said left!'

'Aha! So you _don't_ know where you're going.'

'Shut up and let me drive,' she said, flexing her fingers on the wheel. He laughed and leaned back in his chair.

The first hour slipped away quickly, the monotony of the roads broken up by songs on the radio and James' interest in the Muggle singers.

'Who's this, then?'

'Elton John,' she told him, as the first strains of "Bennie and the Jets" came on. She tapped her fingers to the beat and hummed along.

'You know the song?'

'My mum loves him.' She nodded towards the radio. 'She plays his records in the morning when we're getting ready.'

'Sing for me,' he said with a lazy grin, 'I'm sure you know the words.' She turned her head so she could see him.

'I don't sing.'

'Sure you do.'

'How would you know that?' He was quiet for a moment and she raised her eyebrows, stealing another glance out of the corner of her eye. His hand was in his hair and he was red.

'I, erm, heard you one day. In the Library. You were singing quietly in the Charms section. I don't think you knew I was there.'

Now it was her turn to blush. Again. 'When was this?'

'Last year? Right before Sn—before exams.'

'I see.'

They sat in silence as the song ended and the next played. With another ruffle of his hair and clearing his throat, he spoke. 'You have a nice voice, Evans. Do you know this bloke, then?'

'It's Queen; everyone knows Queen,' she said. It was one of her favourites, actually. She hummed a little bit.

'Ev-_ans,' _he whined.

'You sing!'

'I can't! I sound horrible, to my mother's chagrin.'

'Why?'

'Sing and I'll tell you.' She threw a glare at him but sang the chorus to the song.

'There, now talk.'

'My mom's pretty musical. Singer and all that, but she likes opera mostly. She made me take all sorts of lessons, singing included,' he shrugged. 'Those stopped when I was about eight and they realized I had no vocal ability.'

'What others did you take?'

'Piano. Guitar.'

'You play guitar?' she interrupted.

'Moderately.'

'You'll have to play for me.'

'Not a chance.'

'I sang.'

'You're good. I'm moderate, if that.'

'Merlin,' Lily said with a grin, 'is the famous _James Potter _admitting to not being the best at something? Someone call the newspapers!'

'Shut it, Evans,' he said, tossing a bit of paper at her.

'Was that the map?'

'No,' he sounded insulted. 'I wouldn't tear up our only object of navigation. Don't be daft.'

'That's rich, coming from_ you._'

They bickered until Lily could no longer ignore the needle pointing to "empty". She pulled into the petrol station, ignoring James' lofty sigh.

'We'll never get there if we stop.'

'We'll never get there if we run out of petrol, either,' she shot back. 'You go for the snacks. And get something good.'

He grumbled as he got out of the car and she handed him some money. 'It's so weird!'

'Shh, you're a Muggle today. Remember?'

'My Great Aunt Gertrude would be having a fit,' he said with a sigh, 'That's worth…twenty? Yeah? And that… that's a ten. Ten of what?' He peered at her.

'Ten pounds.'

'Pounds of what?'

'Not that kind of pounds, idiot. It's—oh! I can't explain it. Just give them the amount they ask for. And don't spend it all!'

He came back with his arms full. 'I couldn't decide,' he explained, 'and they didn't have the normal sweets. What kind of establishment doesn't have Chocolate Frogs? They looked at me like I was crazy when I asked for them.'

'Tell me you didn't ask.'

'Why wouldn't I? Was I not supposed to?' He handed her a piece of chocolate of the non-amphibian variety, and popped his own in his mouth.

'Potter, they're not wizards; of _course_ they'd think you're insane. We don't have those.'

'Blimey, you lot are missing out. Oh,' he said, ruffling through his pockets. 'You have the funniest receipts as well. She wrote the sum out on the top. Or some type of sum.'

'Let me see that,' Lily ordered, snatching the paper from his hands. She took one look at it and laughed. 'She gave you her number.'

'What?'

'She wants you to ring her; she probably thought you were cute. Insane.'

'I am cute! As was she … Can you work a fellyphone, Evans?'

'Telephone,' she corrected, 'and I'm not going to help you ring up a girl on your way to a wedding.'

'It's not _my_ wedding,' he protested, then brightened. 'I guess I am going with a date, though.'

'You are _not_ my date.'

'What would you call this then?' He indicated to himself with a lazy wave of the hand. She rolled her eyes.

'A favour.'

'Oh, is that what they call it nowadays?' Grinning wickedly, he drawled the words. Lily went red again—what was with the _blushing?_—and fought a smile. 'I do believe I need at least a second date before I do you any more "favours", Evans.'

'I'll do you a favour and hex your bits if you don't stop,' she said. 'You can see what the shop girl makes of _that._'

He grinned again. 'Your threats are just hiding your jealousy. I can see that blush.'

'It's the flush of anger, I assure you. And this is not a date.'

'Whatever you want to call it…'

She flicked the radio on and turned it up too loud for talking. She could still hear his laughter over the music, though, and she heaved in a deep breath. She wasn't going to date James Potter; she didn't _want_ to date James Potter. Well, not much. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and he smirked. Snapping her gaze back onto the road, she resolved not to think about dating or look at him again.

She pulled into a motel parking lot and stopped the engine. James, having fallen asleep long ago, cracked his eyes open.

'Are we there?' he mumbled somewhat incoherently. She shook her head.

'No, we're about halfway. We would have been closer if _someone_ didn't have to go to the loo every forty-five minutes. Seriously, how much did you drink?'

'It was good.'

'C'mon, let's go get a room,' she said as she opened the door. He stumbled out and stretched his arms up.

'We left with enough time to get to Surrey. Why are we stopping?'

'I might have taken a wrong turn somewhere.'

'A wrong turn?'

She winced. 'Or three.'

'How lost were we?'

'Technically, we've only gone three hours into our journey.'

'Blimey. All that driving for only three hours?'

'I'm sorry! I read the signs wrong and it was too dark to read the map.'

'I'm not worried. More time for you to spend in my company, yeah?' he shot her a grin and she crossed her arms, barely suppressing a grin of her own.

'Yeah, yeah. Let's go.'

'I've got it.' He swiped her rucksack before she could pick it up, shouldering his own as well. He met her glare with a mild look of his own and nodded to the door. 'Lead on.'

They slumped on the bed together, leaning on the headboard and keeping carefully apart. An old _Doctor Who_ episode was on, which she watched drowsily, but James was mesmerised.

'Potter?'

'Hmm?'

'What do you think next year's going to be like?' she murmured, well on her way to sleep.

'Busy.'

'Can you still be Quidditch Captain if you're Head Boy?'

He glanced down at her in surprise. 'Who says I'm going to be Head Boy?'

'I think you'd be on the list.'

'Yes,' he said after a moment's thought. 'I think I could be both. Dumbledore would be _mental_ to appoint me, but I could be both.'

'You'd be good at it,' she breathed, not seeing his surprised expression. She was already asleep.

The morning came too early for her weary bones, and she sighed as the sun woke her. The bed was so comfortable and she was so tired. She opened her eyes and frowned.

'James!' she hissed, shaking the sleeping boy. He was too big for the couch; his limbs were thrown everywhere, falling off the sides and hanging over the edge. It didn't look comfortable.

'Hmm?' he groaned as he turned onto his back.

'I thought we agreed that I would get the couch.'

'That was before you fell asleep on the bed,' he said, blinking up at her. 'Where are my glasses?'

'Here.' She shoved them into his hand. 'You could have woken me up.'

He frowned. 'You were tired. I didn't want to. And I was fine on the couch. Stop fretting.'

'But—'

'Lily.'

'Fine,' she grumbled and reached for her clothes. 'But you didn't have to do that.'

Fifteen minutes later, she felt much better. Also, she was eternally grateful for hair drying charms and other cosmetic magic because she did not have time to spend. James darted into the toilet after her with his own bag.

'I'm going downstairs,' she yelled, 'to ring my mum. She's probably worried about me.' She left and headed to the telephone booths in the corner. Dropping a couple of coins into the slot, she dialled the number and waited.

'Hello?' The familiar voice filtered through the phone and Lily smiled.

'Hi, mum. It's me.'

'Where are you? I thought you said you'd be here last night.'

'It took longer than I thought. I'll be there in time for the rehearsal, don't worry.'

'That's fine, but don't be late! Petunia will murder you if you are.'

'I know that. Oh, mum? I'm bringing a… a friend along. Is that okay?'

'Perfectly.' A crash sounded, followed by an exasperated sigh. 'Lily, love, I've got to go. The cat's just knocked over a vase full of flowers and I need to clean it—'

'No problem. I'll see you soon.'

'Bye!'

She turned and collided with someone's chest. James.

'Whoa,' he said, grabbing her waist to steady her. 'Careful, there. You're done already? I thought birds talked for ages on these things.'

'I don't, and my mum had to go. I'm betting it's crazy at the house. Are you ready?'

'I can handle it, I think.' He grinned. 'Shall we go somewhere for breakfast? And a real one, not the mess they're serving here.'

Lily glanced at her wristwatch. It was early still. 'I'm sure we can manage a stop.'

The restaurant was tiny and mainly populated by elderly patrons. A woman who looked about fifty came to their table with a teapot.

'Ready to order?' she asked, pouring their tea. They nodded.

'Can I have pumpkin juice?' James asked and the lady stared at him.

'Sorry?'

'We'll have apple juice,' Lily said hastily and the waitress gave a nod, hurrying away.

'Don't tell me Muggles don't have pumpkin juice!'

'Shh, Potter. They don't and I'm sure they would think it disgusting.'

'Mad, all of you.'

'You're the mad one, shouting like you are. Keep your voice down.'

'Yes, _mum_.'

'I'm just helping.'

'You're being annoying,' he told her, taking a bite of his toast.

'I believe that's your job,' she retorted, giggling at the sight of his indignant expression. He snatched a forkful of eggs off her plate in retaliation. 'That's not nice!'

He shrugged. 'Neither were you.'

'I was teasing! You took eggs; that's nearly a capital offence.'

He just smirked at her and snuck another forkful. She swiped a bit of his jam and spread it on the empty space of bread where her eggs had been.

'That's disgusting.'

'It's your fault! And it's not so bad, actually.'

'Nauseating.'

'So is your company this early in the morning,' she said with a shrug.

'You should see Peter.'

'Thank you, but I'll pass on that offer.'

'Good choice.' They ate in silence for a while, chewing contentedly. The toast was hot, the eggs were good, the tea was strong, and the boy across from her was fun to be around. The perfect breakfast, really.

'Evans?'

'Hmm,' she mumbled around a mouthful.

'I've just thought of something,' he said with a stricken look. 'Your parents… We just… What did your mum think about us sharing a room? Even though nothing, erm, nothing happened.'

'I might have not told her.'

'She knows you spent the night in hotel?'

'Well, yeah. She doesn't exactly know you're with me.'

'What?'

'She thinks I'm bringing Alice. I forgot to mention it to her—'

James ran a hand through his hair. 'So about the room…'

'Let's not mention it, yeah?'

'Yeah. I'm sorry. If I'd have known—'

'It was my idea,' she told him with a small smile. 'It wasn't your fault at all.'

'Still,' he said anxiously, still ruffling his hair. 'My mum would have my head for this. Don't tell her either. She'll yell at me for being disrespectful and rude. I swear I wasn't trying to…do anything.'

'James! I know, alright. You're gentleman status is intact. Don't worry.'

'He's a nice boy,' the waitress said as Lily paid. 'You're very lucky.'

'Sorry?'

'You make a very cute couple. How long have you been dating?'

'Oh!' Lily shook her head, a small chuckle escaping. 'We're not, erm, together.'

The lady raised her eyebrows. 'Are you sure?'

'Definitely.'

'Then it's a shame.' She handed back her change and shot a meaningful look at James, who was loitering by the door. 'He likes you, you know.'

Lily smiled her thanks and walked back, wrinkling her nose when she reached James.

'What's that face for?'

'The waitress thinks we're dating.' He glanced behind him and slung his arm around her waist.

'Let's give her something to talk about, yeah?'

'I'd rather not,' she said, poking him in the ribs. He jumped and dropped his arm, sadly. It felt nice there. 'Are you ready for more driving?'

'Can I have more of that—what was it called? Right, Coca-Cola?'

'Not until we get within three hours of our destination. We need to make it there on time.'

'Fine,' he grumbled as he slid into the car. 'In that case, I think I'll take a nap. I didn't get such a good night rest because _somebody _stole the bed.'

'Oi! I told you that you could've woken me. It's your fault!'

'Shh,' he admonished and glared at her. 'I'm trying to sleep.'

As he dozed, she pondered the morning. James didn't like her. Well, not as more than a friend, anyway. Not anymore. He'd moved past that fifth year.

Hadn't he?

He'd become her friend over the past year, being in almost all the same classes together. They had enjoyed laughing together, writing papers together, but he had never given any indication that he _liked _her. Except for the occasional remarks, but that was just James.

Wasn't it?

Her head hurt and she was suddenly very aware of his presence beside her. The lady was wrong, she decided. Nothing would change; they would keep on being friends and only friends. Anything else would be too weird.

They raced the clock, stopping only for petrol. But traffic got in their way, slowing them down until Lily was certain she would scream.

Her frustration mounted and her fingers tightened on the wheel as she finally, _finally_, drove onto clear roads. The clock told her that wasn't going to help. She needed to be there by one and it was already half-past eleven. The needle that indicated her speed crept father and farther away from the limit and James watched her nervously.

'Are you alright?'

'No, I'm bloody not! I'm going to be late and Tuney'll be furious and it's her wedding rehearsal and bloody hell, why can't we go faster?'

'Lily, stop,' he said, jerking the wheel so they steered towards a shoulder. Lily slumped in her chair, hiding her face in her hands.

'I can't do this, I can't be late. I can't—' To her horror, she started to cry. 'She hates me already and tomorrow has to be perfect and I have to be there on time and she threw me out of the bridal party because I tried to help with magic. What am I going to do? What are you—Ahh!'

His hands slipped around her waist, picking her up over the centre console and onto his chair. He got out, closing the door gently behind him, and sat in the driver's seat. She hiccupped once as he started the car and deftly pulled it onto the road.

'What are you doing?' she sniffed again, buckling her seatbelt.

'I can drive, Lily. A friend of my dad's taught me. I don't have my licence, but I can drive.' He glanced over at her and smiled. 'You cry or do whatever you need to do.'

She turned on the radio and let the music wash over her. They pulled into the parking lot of the church ten minutes early.

'Thank you,' she said quietly, and he took her hand, squeezing it gently.

'You're welcome.'

They sat in silence for a minute until she was struck by a sudden thought. 'Is my mascara running?'

'A little.'

She rooted around for a tissue and dabbed at her eyes. Taking in a deep sigh, she faced him.

'Okay. I'm ready.' She paused when he didn't follow her. 'Aren't you coming?'

He pointed to himself. 'I'm not family.'

'Nonsense,' she said with a smile. 'You're my date.'


End file.
